Captive cap with off-center opening



Feb. 18, 1964 s. CHERBA CAPTIVE CAP WITH OFF-CENTER OPENING Filed Nov. 15, 1961 WWK I United States Patent 3,121,519 CAPTIVE CAP WITH OFF-CENTER OPENlNG Samuel Cherba, Totowa, N..l., assignor to Container Corporation of America, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 13, 1%1, Ser. No. 151,630 1 Claim. (Cl. 222-519) This invention relates to closures and more particularly to a plastic cap adapted for cooperation with the neck of a container such a a plastic bottle or tube.

The invention comprehends a closure arrangement for a container which includes a cap with a pouring opening therein arranged and disposed to permit dispensing of the contents of the container without removal of the cap therefrom.

The invention is an improvement on earlier closure arrangements wherein a container is provided with a central plug or fitting which is adapted for cooperation with a captive cap having a central opening used for pouring and within which is disposed a portion of the plug when the cap is in closed position. In the present invention a captive cap is provided with an opening adapted to cooperate with the neck of the container in such a manner as to eliminate the necessity for a center plug.

it is therefore an object of this invention to provide a closure arrangement for a container, including a captive cap threadably atachable to the container, and having a pouring opening which can be closed by the engagement between the cap and container when the former is in closed position.

A more specific object of the inventon is the provision in a closure arrangement of the type described, of a cap tive cap having a pouring opening therethrough disposed radially outward of the center thereof in radial alignment with the upper surface of the container neck, so that when the cap is in closed position, the container neck will serve as a stopper for the pouring opening in the cap.

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from an examination of the following description and drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a container and cap embodying features of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a partial vertical section, taken on line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a partial vertical section of the structure of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURES 5 and 6 are views similar to the views of FIGURES 2 and 4, but illustrate a modified form of the invention.

It will be understood that, for purposes of clarity, certain elements have been intentionally omitted from certain views where they are illustrated to better advantage in other views.

Referring now to the drawing for a better understanding of the invention, and particularly to FIGURES 1 through 4, it will be seen that a cap C embodying features of the invention is shown as applied to a container K, which may be either a bottle or tube adapted to contain a liquid or paste.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, the container comprises a body 16 having a preferably integrally formed neck 12 at one end thereof. The neck is cylindrical and includes the usual central discharge opening or throat 14 communicating with the interior of the body of the container. At the end of the neck there is presented an annular outwardly facing preferably fiat end surface 16. On its outer surface the neck is provided with an external thread 18, adapted to cooperate with a mating thread on the cap.

Still referring to FIGURE 2, it will be seen that the 3,121,519 Patented Feb. 18, 1964 neck may be provided on its outer surface with an annular sealing bead 20, which is preferably spaced axially above the thread 13 and located a slight distance below surface 16 of the neck. Also, the outer surface of the neck may be provided with an annular retaining flange 22, which is preferably disposed axially downward from the thread 18, and which is adapted to cooperate with a complementary projection on the cap in a manner described hereinafter.

The cap comprises a relatively thin flat end wall and a sidewall or skirt 32 presenting an internal thread 34 adapted for threadable engagement with thread 18 on the container neck. Immediately above the internal thread 34 of the cap there is presented a smooth cylindrical inwardly facing surface 36 disposed in vertical alignment with the sealing bead 20 of the container neck for cooperation thcrewith when the cap and container are in assembled condition to effect a seal therebetween, as illustrated in FIGURE 2 of the drawing. It will be understood that the positions of bead 20 and surface 36 may be reversed, with the bead being located on the cap and the sealing surface on the exterior of the neck.

Additionally, the internal surface of the cap may be provided, at a location axially below thread 34, an annular, preferably interrupted, inwardly projecting ridge 33 disposed in vertical alignment with retaining flange 22 of the container neck and adapted to cooperate therewith for preventing the accidental removal of the cap from the neck when the cap is rotated in a counterclockwise direction to unscrew it from the container neck. It is, of course, essential that either the cap or the container neck be formed of a material which is sufficiently elastic to permit the deformation of either the neck retaining flange 22 or the cap retaining ridge 38, so that the cap ridge can be forced over the neck flange when the cap is originally applied to the container but which will not pass back over the neck flange unless force is applied.

The end wall 30 of the cap may be provided with a generally flat inwardly facing surface 40 from which projects an annular preferably V-shaped sealing bead 42. The contact or sealing diameter of the head should be slightly greater than the inner diameter of the neck throat 14 so that when the cap and container are in assembled condition the sealing bead is disposed in substantial radial alignment with neck surface 16 to effect a liquid-tight seal between the cap and the container when the former is in closed position.

As best seen in FIGURES 2 and 3, there is provided in the cap wall 34) a pouring opening 44, extending axially therethrough. Opening 44 is disposed radially outward of cap sealing head 42, so as to be in radial alignment with the top surfaces 16 of the container neck. Thus, it will be seen that when the cap is in the open position, as shown in FIGURE 4, liquid may be poured from the body of the container through the throat of the neck and out of the pouring opening 44 without removing the cap from the container. Also, when the cap is in closed position, as shown in FIGURE 2, the engagement between cap sealing head 42 and neck surface 16- effectively closes off communication between container throat 14 and cap pouring opening 44, so as to prevent the flow of liquid therebetween. Also, the engagement between the container neck outer sealing bed 2% and the smooth cylindrical internal surface 36 of the cap serves to prevent the fiow of liquid out from between the side walls of the neck and cap when the cap is in either open or closed position.

It will be understood that after liquid or paste has been poured or moved from the container through the cap opening 44 and the cap has been screwed down into closed position on the container, there is a likelihood that a small portion of liquid, especially when the liquid is particularly viscose, will be trapped between surface 16 of the container neck and surface 40 of the cap. if there is any appreciable amount of liquid so trapped, it will tend to ooze out pouring opening 44 and run down the outside of the cap. In order to prevent this from happening, internal surface 40 of the cap may be provided with a pair of grooves or recesses 46, best seen in FIG- URE 3, which serve to receive and retain any excess liquid which may form on the upper surface of the container neck. As best seen in FIGURE 3, the recesses 46 are preferably semi-circular in shape and are disposed in diametrically opposed relation and sparated from each other by a pair of raised or level portions 48 of the surface 40.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, raised portion 48 is in alignment :with cap discharge open-ing 44 and serves to seal ofi the opening when the cap is in closed position to prevent air from causing the evaporation of material trapped in cap grooves 46.

If desired, the outer surface of the cap may be knurled or provided with a plurality of grooves 50 to facilitate grasping and turning of the cap by hand.

'Turning now to FIGURES 5 and 6 of the drawing, wherein a modified form of the invention is illustrated, it will be seen that the basic arrangement is the same as that illustrated in the previously described views. The primary difference between this embodiment and that previously described is that neck retaining flange 22; has been eliminated and neck outer sealing bead 22a has been modified so that it can function as both a sealing bead and a retaining flange adapted to cooperate with the retaining ridge 38a of the neck, which has been relocated above the cap thread.

I claim:

A combination closure and container neck having a central discharge opening, comprising:

(a) a flat, annular, outwardly facing surface on said neck;

(b) an external thread on said neck;

(c) said closure including a one-piece cap adapted to cooperate with said neck;

(d) an internal thread on said cap engageable with the thread on said neck;

(c) said cap presenting a fiat, inner surface opposing the fiat surface of said neck;

(1) an annular sealing bead projecting from said cap flat surface and disposed to seat on the flat neck surface when the cap is in closed position;

(g) said cap having a pouring opening extending therethrough in parallel relation with the axis of the cap and disposed radially outward of said cap sealing bead and in axial alignment with said neck flat surface to prevent the passage of material from said neck discharge opening therethrough when the cap is in closed position; and

(h) at least one recess in said cap flat surface disposed radially outward of said sealing bead and in axial alignment with said neck fiat surface for receiving the greater portion of any material entrapped between the opposed cap and neck fiat surfaces to prevent such entrapped material from oozing out of the cap pouring opening when the cap is moved to closed position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,601,818 Fusay Oct. 5, 1926 2,950,033 Henchert Aug. 23, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 375 Great Britain Oct. 6, 1898 50,400 Denmark July 8, 1935 635,995 Germany Oct. 1, 1936 

